Epic Video games launched RealityScan for iOS right this moment. The free app, beforehand out there in a , lets anybody scan real-world objects with their telephone and switch them into high-fidelity 3D fashions.
The app is the fruit of Epic’s of Capturing Actuality, an organization specializing in photogrammetry software program. Like the corporate’s desktop software program, RealityScan combines 2D photographs to make seamless 3D property for video games and different digital environments. The concept is to allow recreation builders and different creatives to scan real-world objects at any time and anywhere for his or her initiatives. (If the metaverse ever takes off, you’ll be able to think about instruments like this changing into important.)
The scanning course of begins with signing into your Epic Video games account and taking a minimum of 20 photographs of an object from all sides. As you progress your telephone round, a real-time high quality map reveals how properly you’ve lined it: inexperienced denotes well-covered areas, yellow might use extra consideration and crimson wants probably the most extra photographs. It visualizes the locations from which you’ve snapped every image as one thing akin to little Polaroids floating round your merchandise.
Epic Video games
The app uploads and robotically aligns the pictures within the cloud as you’re taking the photographs. You possibly can preview the mannequin by the digital camera view and swap between the standard map and an in-progress, full-color render. While you need to crop it, it pops up 3D handles so that you can drag round, guaranteeing it captures solely the merchandise, not the ground beneath it or background objects.
The method works finest with easy objects captured in even, oblique lighting (reflective or moist surfaces received’t seize properly). It additionally seems to work finest with bigger objects, as my try to seize a small Mr. T motion determine resulted in one thing that appears extra like a pointillistic portray than a usable mannequin.
When you’re pleased with the seize, you’ll be able to export it to Sketchfab (a 3D asset platform Epic final yr), the place you should utilize it for 3D, digital actuality and augmented actuality initiatives. Optionally, in case you’ve captured one thing distinctive, you possibly can attempt to promote your 3D mannequin. Recreation builders needing a selected merchandise for a digital setting are probably the most logical viewers right here.
RealityScan is accessible right this moment as a for iOS and iPadOS on the App Retailer. Earlier this yr, Epic stated an Android model would arrive later within the yr, though the corporate is operating quick on time to fulfill that deadline.
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